Plan to Trim California’s Regulatory Powers Likely This Week

The Trump administration will unveil a widely expected proposal this week that seeks to repeal California’s right to set its own air pollution standards for cars, sources tell Bloomberg News.

The plan would rescind a right granted to the state by the federal Clean Air Act of 1970. The White House position is that California’s ability to regulate carbon dioxide emissions runs afoul of a separate federal regulation that allows only the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to regulate fuel economy.

Carbon dioxide is a natural byproduct of consuming petroleum fuel, so limiting CO₂ emissions has a direct impact on fuel efficiency. CO₂ has been added relatively recently to the list of regulated emissions from piston-powered vehicles.

The potential conflict of rulemaking powers for emission and fuel economy was no problem as long as California and the federal government rules coincided. That has been true for many years.

But now the Trump administration intends to freeze scheduled tighter emission limits that currently are scheduled to take effect in 2022-2026. California has said it intends to implement the tougher standards, including those for CO₂, anyway.

Bloomberg’s sources say the White House will argue that freezing the standards will reduce new-car prices, thereby encouraging owners of older vehicles to buy safer and more efficient new ones.

California—along with 16 other states and the District of Columbia that follow its regulations—filed a lawsuit in May to shield the state’s regulatory rights. Carmakers have said they want to avoid a lengthy legal battle over the issue.